Planter

ABSTRACT

A plant container with a pot and a coaster ( 2 ) made of plastic, in particular as a flowerpot, whereby the coaster ( 2 ) which is closed at the bottom to serve as a water dish is to be attached undetachably via coupling devices to the pot ( 1 ) which is provided with holes at the bottom and is designed in the sense of an easy but secure connection of the pot and the coaster in such a manner that the coaster ( 2 ) and the pot ( 1 ) are interconnected via coupling elements ( 11, 15 ) by at least one conically tapering guide face ( 9, 16 ) and are mutually engaged by a rotational movement.

This invention relates to a flowerpot or plant holder according to thepreamble of Claim 1, such as that used in particular as a hangingbasket-type flowerpot, where the coaster functions both as a waterreservoir and also as protection from dripping water for living areasbeneath the hanging basket. Essentially, however, coasters that can beattached to the pot can also be used either hanging or standing in someother way.

With traditional flowerpots of this type, snap connections in the formof hooks and holes are provided, requiring that the parts be alignedaccurately. This is possible in general with visual control when the potis not yet filled or when nothing is planted in it. In practice,commercial growers have mostly switched over to using pots withoutcoasters and growing the plants in the pot until they are ready formarket and only then attaching the coaster to a ready-to-sell product.

Accordingly, the object of this invention is to design a plant containerof the type in question here so that the coaster can be connected to thepot easily in a “blind” maneuver, i.e., without looking inside the pot,in which case the pot must also be designed for an economical plantgrowing operation and the coaster is also to be connected so securely tothe pot that it does not become detached easily, even when heavy rootgrowth penetrates into the coaster.

According to this invention, this object is achieved with a flowerpotaccording to Claim 1. The design of guide surfaces for simple, rapid andreliable joining creates the prerequisite for handling that makes itpossible to avoid errors that could otherwise lead to mistakes anddamage due to incorrect joining or even problematical root growth. Thetransition from a simple connector-type movement to a rotationalmovement for the coupling engagement provides a high level of securitythat the connection between the pot and the coaster will not be lostsimply due to the pressure of root growth.

With conical guide surfaces, preferably aligned rotationallysymmetrically with a central axis of symmetry of the pot, bringing thepot and the coaster together as well as the actual joining operationhave a joint and clear alignment. Essentially the lower pot area and/orthe edge of the coaster is available as conical guide surfaces; theseareas are traditionally designed with a conical taper and they havelargely retained this basic shape because of the shaping conditions andfor the purpose of stackability. However, a coaster which extends beyondthe bottom pot area by a considerable radius is usually provided forflowerpots to permit a larger water reservoir and especially also toallow the water level to be seen. In such cases, direct contact guidancebetween the inside of the edge of the coaster and the bottom outside ofthe pot is out of the question. To bridge the distance, protruding guideelements may then be provided on the sides of the coaster but thesecause problems from a technical as well as an aesthetic standpoint.

It appears to be easier and more convenient to provide the conical guidesurfaces in the form of a dome on at least one side of the coaster or atthe center of the pot. A guide face on one side may itself produce acorresponding centering effect when matching contact elements arearranged on the opposite side, e.g., three or more contact elements thatengage with a conical guide face and are arranged in a circle.Preferably, however, a dome with a lateral surface in the form of atruncated cone is provided on both sides, i.e., on the side of the potas well as on the side of the coaster, thus permitting a uniformguidance contact over the entire area.

After bringing the parts together in this way so that they are centered,a coupling connection is established by mutual twisting of the parts.Essentially a plurality of threaded or bayonet-type couplings may beconsidered for this purpose. For plant containers produced by injectionmolding, in particular hooked engagement with hook-shaped projections onone side and matching wall recesses on the other side may be used.

Exemplary embodiments of this invention are illustrated in the drawingand explained in greater detail below. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 shows an oblique view of a plant holder with the pot (one half)and a separate coaster,

FIG. 2 shows a section through the plant container according to FIG. 1with the coaster attached to the pot,

FIG. 3 shows an enlarged detail from FIG. 2 in an oblique view,

FIG. 4 shows a top view of a central (dome) area of the pot,

FIG. 5 shows an oblique view into the pot from above,

FIG. 6 shows an oblique view of a central area of the pot on an enlargedscale,

FIG. 7 shows a view of the coaster from underneath, and

FIG. 8 shows an oblique view of a modified embodiment of a coaster.

FIG. 1 shows a pot 1, one half of which is shown in the drawing toillustrate the inside of the pot and in particular the bottom area. Acoaster 2 is provided for attachment to the pot 1. The pot 1 is producedby the injection molding method, for example, and has an edge 3 at thetop designed for reinforcement in particular and two shoulders 4 and 5on a conical side wall 6 and a highly profiled bottom area 7, which isdesigned with holes and ribs for a good drainage effect and optionallyalso for watering (“ebb and flow”?).

In deviation from traditional flowerpots of this type, the pot 1 has adome 8 in the form of a truncated cone in the central bottom area, itsconical side walls functioning as guide faces 9 and its end face 10being designed with specially shaped holes 11 for a coupling engagement.

The coaster 2 is shown here with a flat basic shape in the form of atruncated cone with a peripheral edge 12 and a flat bottom 13 on theother side with a central dome 14 with hooks 15 protruding as couplingelements, while a conical jacket 16 serves as the guide face whichcooperates with the interior guide face 9 of the dome 8 on the pot 1.

A peripheral hollow rib 17 also protrudes upward with respect to theflat bottom 13; when the coasters are stacked one inside the other forshipping, this hollow rib forms a spacer. The hollow rib 17 alsofunctions as a spacer element with respect to the pot 1 when they arecoupled together, in which case it is in contact with the bottom 7 ofthe pot 1 in an area near the edge according to FIG. 2 and secures thepot 1 and the coaster 2 with respect to one another.

As FIG. 2 also shows, the guide faces are in contact with one anotherwhen coupled together. Thus they simplify not only handling with joiningthem together without requiring any particular attention and without anyparticular trial and error and they are also supported on one anotherand thus achieve a mutual reinforcing effect.

In the enlarged oblique view according to FIG. 3, an area of the endface 10 of the dome 8 in the pot 1 can be seen with one of the threeholes or slots 11 with a hook 15 passing through from the bottom, saidhook being situated halfway between a through-hole position and a lockedposition on the right end of the slot 11. The hook 15 has a recess onits side situated toward the center of the end face 10 as a hook mouth18 with a hook shoulder 19 above it, arranged beneath a head 21 which iswidened with respect to the shaft 20 of the hook.

The slot 11 is at least slightly wider than the head 21 in itsengagement area 22 which can be seen at the left of the drawing, whereasin a hook engagement area 23, it is somewhat broader at the right thanthe hook shaft 20 but is narrower than the hook head 21. This permits aconventional bayonet-type coupling connection. To facilitate thecoupling movement, the hook shoulder 19 is designed with an inclinationfor sliding onto it, i.e., it is higher at the right and at the front inthe direction of movement than at the left, so it can be engaged withoutapplying pressure.

In the coupling movement, the hook 15 runs over a threshold-like catchelement 24 with an inclined left front edge and a steep right rear edge,so that the engaged hook cannot become disengaged. In particular, careis taken to ensure that the pressure of the growing roots which couldalso move in a circle does not cause the coaster to become detachedagain.

It is self-evident that engagement for this purpose may be accomplishedin various ways, e.g., also by a sawtooth profiling, preferably on bothsides, of the abutting surfaces of the hook 15 and the end face 10. Thefront inclined surface of the catch element 24 could of course also rundeeper into the enlarged area of the slot 11. In addition, the engagedposition of the hook 15 at the right of the catch element 24 may bedesigned so that the shoulder surface 19 finds a large-area support.

With a spherical catch of a given height, an essentially detachable butadequately secure coupling that is thus secured against detachment isprovided.

Depending on the individual conditions of the pot design, the shapingoption and in particular the unmolding, there are various alternativesfor such a hook engagement. A hook mouth may easily be designed so thatthe slot becomes narrower from a push-through opening on both sides. Thehook mouth may also be positioned on the outside radially so that loadscan be applied to the inclined surfaces of the dome 8 by a shorterroute. In another embodiment, the anchoring holes in the pot may have aroof-top or be partially covered to prevent them from becoming cloggeddue to roots.

A very narrow hook—without the widened hook head—is also possible incombination with a very narrow slot by the fact that the hook mouth isshifted forward in the coupling direction so that the hook engagesextends beyond the end of the slot. This design is also by no meanslimited to the hooks being arranged on the top side of the coaster dome14. This arrangement may also be reversed, with the hooks being on thebottom of the pot dome 8. In the case of a coaster dome 14 which isdesigned to be at least as high as the edge 12, hook openings are alsoeasily provided in the end face without any concern about water escapingat this point.

As in the present case, it may also be self-evident to provideperforations in the wall in the hook area. FIG. 6 shows an end face 25of the dome 14 of the coaster 2 with the three abovementioned hooks 15which are distributed uniformly on their circumference at the edge—likethe slots 11 in the dome 8 of the pot. Beneath the respective hook mouth18, the end face 25 has a recess 26 which facilitates unmolding of thecoaster from its injection mold. The mold for the coaster extends fromthe bottom through the area of the end face 25, extending into the areaof the hook mouth, and the shaping of the hook shoulder 19 there. Aftermolding, the workpiece can be ejected in the axial direction across theend face 25, whereas unmolding of the hook with the end face 25 closedwould presuppose a rotational movement for unmolding.

These recesses 26 can be seen from beneath in FIG. 7. In addition, thearea of the hollow rib 17 can be seen in the view from beneath, itsring-shaped hollow form being interrupted at short intervals by webs 27which at least mostly cut off the cross section. These webs complete thespacing function of the hollow rib 17 mentioned above by preventing thehollow ribs from mutual penetration when the pots are stacked and thusprecluding a nonspecific stacking distance and the risk of jamming ofthe pots.

An alternative embodiment of a coaster 32 according to FIG. 8 isobtained from the fact that the spacer element provided here is not aperipheral hollow rib but instead pieces of hollow rib sections 33 areprovided. Interruptions 34 in between permit an exchange of waterbetween the inner and outer bottom areas on both sides of the spacerelements 33 and optionally also an additional space for roots to growthrough. It is self-evident that these ring sections 33 on the bottomside must also be secured against sticking when the pots are stackedtogether when they are designed to be hollow on the bottom sideaccording to the new or thin-wall shaping. In each ring section one ormore transverse webs may be sufficient to secure the pots. The ringsections may also be replaced by a circle or a grid of hollow nubs,which then serve the same purpose.

It is self-evident that the coupling elements need not necessarily beconnected to the centering elements. For example, if centering elementsare provided on the pot and coaster like the two central domes in thepresent case, coupling elements may be arranged farther toward the edgeto obtain a securing effect distributed in the base area. For example,spacer elements of the type described here may be provided with hookelements which engage in holes in the bottom of the pot.

1. Plant container comprising a pot (1) and a coaster (2) made ofplastic, whereby the coaster (2) is closed at the bottom and serves as awater dish undetachably attached by coupling elements to the pot (1)which is provided with holes on the bottom, wherein the coaster (2) andthe pot (1) are mutually engaged via at least one guide surface (9, 16)tapering in a conical shape and they become engaged with one another bymeans of the coupling elements (11, 15) via a rotational movement. 2.Plant container according to claim 1, wherein the guide face is designedon a central dome (8, 14) in the form of a truncated cone.
 3. Plantcontainer according to claim 2, wherein the dome (8, 14) is providedwith the coupling elements (11, 15).
 4. Plant container according toclaim 2 wherein both the pot (1) and the coaster (2) are designed with adome (8, 14) in the shape of a truncated cone, the pot and the coasterhaving abutting guide faces (9, 16).
 5. Plant container according toclaim 4, wherein the coupling elements are designed in the form of hooks(15) on one of the pot and the coaster and holes (11) in the wall on theother one of the pot and the coaster.
 6. Plant container according toclaim 5, wherein the hooks (15) are designed so that they protrudeupward on an end face of the dome (14) of the coaster (2) and openings(11) are provided in an end face (10) of the dome of the pot (1), thehooks (15) engaging in these openings in coupling engagement with mutualrotation.
 7. Plant container according to claim 6, wherein the hooks(15) have a hook mouth (18) pointing in the radial direction on at leastone side.
 8. Plant container according to claim 7, wherein the openings(11) are designed with a width that narrows in the direction of rotationin the manner of a keyhole.
 9. Plant container according to claim 8,characterized in that the openings (11) are designed to be at leastpartially covered with a roof.
 10. Plant container according to claim 9,wherein the coupling elements are secured by catch elements (24). 11.Plant container according to claim 10, wherein the dome (14) protrudesupward above an edge (12) of the coaster.
 12. Plant container accordingto claim 11, wherein the coaster (2) is provided with at least onespacer element (17) with respect to the pot (1).
 13. Plant containeraccording to claim 11, wherein the spacer element (17) is designed witha ring shape in the coaster (2).
 14. Plant container according to claim13, wherein the spacer element includes an interrupted row of ringsections (33).
 15. Plant container according to claim 13 wherein thespacer element (33) includes a hollow rib which is open at the bottomand whose hollow space is subdivided by at least one web.
 16. Plantcontainer according to claim 1, wherein the pot forms a guide face witha lower wall area whereby the coaster has guide elements which protrudeinward toward the guide face within an edge extending around the guideface at a distance.
 17. Plant container according to claim 1, whereinthe coupling elements are designed in the form of hooks (15) on one ofthe pot and the coaster and holes (11) in the wall on the other one ofthe pot and the coaster.
 18. Plant container according claim 1, whereinthe coupling elements are secured by catch elements (24).
 19. Plantcontainer according to claim 2, wherein the dome (14) protrudes upwardabove an edge (12) of the coaster.
 20. Plant container according toclaim 1, wherein the coaster (2) is provided with at least one spacerelement (17) with respect to the pot (1).